Omaggio alla pittura 

Curator: This acrylic painting is titled "Omaggio alla pittura" by Tano Festa. Its creation date remains unconfirmed. Editor: It’s surprisingly playful, almost child-like in its simplicity and the boldness of the primary colours. A really refreshing feel to it, at least initially. Curator: Festa's connection to Arte Povera, with its embrace of common materials and the elevation of everyday objects, becomes intriguing when viewing this. Consider the use of acrylic paint here; how it democratizes the means of art production and challenges elitist notions tied to traditional techniques like oil painting and the labour involved. Editor: Right, because that choice positions the work outside traditional definitions and makes it much more accessible to a broader range of people, both as producers and viewers. It’s speaking to the viewer about more than just paint itself. We can view the composition within a context of art production which brings us back to the piece’s title. There's also something to be said about the scale and vibrancy, working to interrupt the canonized tradition of Renaissance painting that has otherwise dominated the art market. Curator: Precisely, by using easily accessible materials and these basic shapes and colours, Festa creates a tension with art's more commodified aspects. Also, thinking about labour—it is hard to say that any large amount of physical or artistic labour went into the making. Editor: Which questions this celebration of artistic labour or painterly gesture and individual ‘genius’. In thinking about that more broadly, and beyond the making, perhaps Festa here references those old traditions, in part, as an examination of modern issues surrounding art and labour – the socio-economic factors affecting art making are key to any thorough discussion here. Curator: Absolutely. This piece, in its very being, acts as commentary on the means, materials, and modes surrounding art, consumption, and commodification. Editor: The canvas feels lighter now; this artwork has made me question more about accessibility, process, and meaning as a social act than I first assumed, which has also reconfigured how I perceive the artwork as object itself. Curator: Yes, seeing "Omaggio alla pittura" in a broader network can help unveil some interesting possibilities behind a seemingly light and whimsical piece.